Because of Medgar Evers … activism became a calling

Jun. 2, 2013

Constance Slaughter-Harvey

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Constance Slaughter-Harvey

Medgar was a role model and hero that I never got to truly know. All of my life, I wanted to be a missionary and doctor and help people. Medgar helped people in his own way.

I was selected to participate in the Pre-Science Program at Tougaloo College following graduation from Hawkins High School in Forest in 1963. I met Medgar several days before he was murdered on June 12, 1963, when he came to the campus. He was a real inspiration as he talked about student involvement in voting. I remember him saying, “As long as you don’t have the ballot, you don’t count.” That really struck me.

There was something magical about his persona. He was really handsome, and he reminded me of my daddy. He was sure of himself, and he wasn’t afraid of anything. He stood for “right.” He had all of us in the Pre-Science Program mesmerized, especially the young girls. He was our pied piper.

Medgar was murdered six days before my 17th birthday, and that made me angry, hurt and determined to change the climate. My daddy, who also admired Medgar, was visibly upset.

I changed my major focus from pre-medicine to pre-law, as I felt that was the only way I could do something about his tragic death. It hurt me then to see a great man murdered and not be able to realize his dream … voting rights extended to all people, especially us. The movement for equality was my mission, and law school was the venue and arena.

While at Tougaloo, I participated in the political process — poll watching for Fannie Lou Hamer, Emma Sanders and the Rev. Clint Collier. I became president of the Tougaloo College student government and encouraged all students to get involved.

As a law student at the University of Mississippi, I remained active in the political process and served as a poll watcher for Democratic presidential nominee Hubert Humphrey. Tommy Mayfield and I barely made it out of a Byhalia polling place because of a Klan group blocking the road. It was Medgar’s spirit that made me realize that I could make a difference.

While serving as assistant secretary of state for Elections and Public Lands under Secretary of State Dick Molpus, I remembered Medgar’s sacrifices, and I vowed to do the right thing, as Daddy and Mama had instilled in my sisters and me. Elimination of dual registration, single shot balloting and other statutory devices intended to keep the ballot from black people, as well as the passage of the Mail-in Voter Registration Act, were victories for Medgar. What a tribute to Medgar.

Every action I took in the elections area for the 12 years I served in that capacity, I felt Medgar’s spirit. His life, courage and legacy inspired me to do what I could and to make a difference by working to ensure that the ballot was available to all citizens.

What a spirit!

Constance Slaughter-Harvey, a lawyer and former Mississippi assistant secretary of state, became the first African-American woman to graduate from the University of Mississippi School of Law in 1970.